


In The Midst of Everything

by Cthulhus_Curse



Category: Happiest Season (2020)
Genre: Alison Brie and Aubrey Plaza own my life, F/F, Fluff, I Ship These Two, I still cannot figure out what Riley’s last name is, Rarepair, Sloane is actually soft af, Somehow I wrote this in a day?, TW: Brief mention of homophobia and a slur
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-26
Updated: 2020-11-26
Packaged: 2021-03-10 04:41:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,228
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27727612
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cthulhus_Curse/pseuds/Cthulhus_Curse
Summary: Sloane is falling and Riley is there to catch her.
Relationships: Riley Bennett/Sloane Caldwell, Riley Johnson/Sloane Caldwell
Comments: 10
Kudos: 153





	In The Midst of Everything

**Author's Note:**

> I know a lot of you hate Sloane, but I think she’s actually really soft underneath all that shiz. Girl just needs a hug and a kiss. From Riley. Or me. Or both. 
> 
> Anyway, this is probably bound to have spelling mistakes cause I ain’t got a beta, so I apologize about that!
> 
> ALSO SHOUTOUT TO MAYA FOR GIVING ME THIS IDEA ILY GIRL AND I LOVED THIS IDEA THANKS!!!!

Any type of familial gathering was uncomfortable for Riley, but more so when Harper’s family was involved. They were all just plain weird. Well, maybe not Jane. She seemed like she didn’t have a stick up her ass. Plus, the tales of her ongoing book were very entertaining. 

Even as weird as that family was, there was one member that had always stuck out to Riley. Surprisingly, it wasn’t Harper, but her eldest sister, Sloane. Riley couldn’t put a finger on when the affection for the woman started, but she knew it was before she and Harper began dating. All she could remember were those days in middle school and early freshman year where she would go over the house. Harper was not a morning person, so Riley was forced to raid the kitchen by herself. Sloane would always accompany her. 

Sloane was, to put it lightly, kind of a bitch, but a misunderstood bitch. While Riley wasn’t good at psychoanalysis, it still didn’t take a genius to see how much each sister, mainly Sloane, competed for their parent’s affection. The woman was just a walking disappointment to them. Well, maybe not as much as Jane, but she was getting there. Still, Riley couldn’t help but be drawn to her soft and nurturing nature, one which she would only let out once she knew she was safe. 

Those quiet mornings in the kitchen were spent in one another’s presences. The silence that grew by the seconds was not awkward, but safe. The older brunette would always make sure to prepare an extra cup of hot chocolate for her companion. They would sometimes talk and when they did, the conversations were deep and full of understanding. Sloane was young Riley’s safe place, even if the woman didn’t know it. 

Even as much as Riley would have loved to reminisce about her  _ very fun and awesome  _ high school years, it would have to wait. She currently stood by an empty doorframe watching quite the scene unfold before her. Never in a million years did she think Sloane would be beating the shit out of Harper. It was enjoyable to say the least.

“Abby!” Came Harper’s breathless voice. Watching her struggle to even breathe while Sloane attacked her was kind of fun. It was well deserved. “Get the Santa!”

“I mean-” Poor Abby didn’t even know what to do or say. Not only had she been thrown in the middle of a sibling rivalry that has been going on forever, but she also happened to be Harper’s partner. That was a double ‘oof’ if you asked Riley. 

“Stay out of this, Sappho!” Sloane, who, in Riley’s opinion, was winning the fight, growled. She grabbed a chunk of Harper’s hair and pulled it as hard as she could. Riley wished she had a phone in hand. She just knew that the sisters would have gone viral for that, but she couldn’t do that to Sloane. 

Surprisingly, nobody else at the party heard the commotion. Perhaps it was for the best. After all, neither Ted nor Tipper would be pleased if they caught their daughters mid-fight. 

“I can’t believe you’re dating Abby!” Sloane barked as she held down her sister’s head. Riley did agree with her though. How could someone like Abby, who genuinely seemed like a nice person, be dating Harper? Not even Pythagoras could figure out that equation. “You didn’t tell me!”

“Well at least my husband isn’t going around fucking random women,” Harper snapped back almost immediately. “Or is it your ex-husband now? Fucking pathetic if you ask me!”

The world suddenly shifted and froze. Nobody, not Abby, Sloane, Harper, Eric, John, or even Riley moved a muscle. The bomb that had been dropped was way bigger than the one against Harper. It made Riley want to beat the living daylights out of her. Instead, she had to settle for gripping the door frame so hard, her knuckles turned white. 

Meanwhile, Sloane's face was stoic. She had stopped flailing altogether and just stayed there kneeled besides Harper. 

“I don’t-” It was clear Sloane was attempting to find the right words, but it was in vain. No words could be said to combat against what her sister had just dropped upon her. So instead of replying, the brunette simply cleared her throat and promptly stood up. As if nothing had occurred, Sloane turned on her heel, opened the door, and walked out into the cold night. 

Everyone else just stayed there motionless. It was clear Eric was having some sort of crisis, but he didn’t seem to care as much. After all, he wasn’t technically Sloane’s husband anymore. Abby just awkwardly leaned against the wall, her eyes boring into Harper’s frame disappointingly. John was just, well, John. Riley wouldn’t be surprised to find that he filmed the entire thing. He was just  _ that guy  _ as Abby had so colorfully described. 

Harper was just there. She didn’t seem to show any remorse for her words, Riley knew that much. The brunette just kind of lay there on the floor. It was pathetic. 

Letting out a frustrated sigh, Riley walked through the remains of the warzone. She paid no mind to Harper, but sent a soft smile in Abby’s way. The poor woman probably needed a friend to process the shit show that she had witnessed, but that’s what John was there for. Riley’s job was to be there for Sloane, even if the woman probably forgot of her existence. 

After grabbing her coat, Riley made a beeline for the door. She opened it and strode out into the darkness, not caring if she froze to death. 

The freezing breeze slapped her face immediately. Still, Riley carried on. She scanned the outside of the house which was, to her dismay, filled with cars on top of cars, but no Sloane in sight. Here's to hoping the woman didn’t get hypothermia. 

Making her way across the maze of vehicles, Riley sighed. She couldn’t help but feel terrible for Sloane. Always the disappointment for her parents. She had given up her career for the sake of her children and nobody saw how noble that was. People were assholes, but that wasn’t anything new. 

After what felt like forever, Riley found her target. The sight alone almost broke her heart, though. Sloane was there, slumped against her car, hugging herself in an attempt to stop her body from freezing. For a second, Riley considered going back into the house and slapping Harper, but it was a short lived thought. After all, she had just registered the fact that the woman was, in fact, crying. 

“Hey,” Riley slowly approached the woman, who, as soon as she heard a voice, started cleaning the tears from her face. The taller brunette only sympathetically smiled in return. “Here. I don’t want you to freeze to death.”

As much as Riley wanted to wear her coat, because winter on the east coast was hellish, she still made sure to wrap it around Sloane. The poor woman needed it more anyway. Even if she didn’t need it, Riley would still give it to her. She liked her that much, still. 

“Thanks,” The broken tone in Sloane’s voice only further fueled Riley’s angry with Harper. “You didn’t have to do this.”

While Sloane was right, she also wasn’t. Yeah, maybe Riley didn’t have to go chasing after her ex-girlfriend’s oldest sister. It wasn’t entirely appropriate, but she wanted to do it. Not only for Slone, but for herself. She so desperately missed those blissful mornings with the older woman. Those mornings were theirs and Harper took that away from her. So while she didn’t have to do anything for Sloane, the woman who probably had forgotten about her, she wanted to. Plus, to a certain extent, she did need to do it. Riley needed to be there for Slone the way Sloane was there for her all those years before. 

“You’re right, but I wanted to,” Riley settled with saying. It was better than declaring her love for the woman anyway. “Come here before you freeze to death.” 

Riley opened her arms up for a hug that she never expected would come. Why would Sloane even want to touch her. She was, as her high school peers would say, a dirty dyke. Nobody wanted anything to do with her, much less Sloane Caldwell. Yet, Riley was surprised when the older woman almost instantly dove into the embrace. It was nice.

Letting herself relax, Riley wrapped her arms around the other woman’s body. Sloane was, shockingly, tinier than Riley ever imagined. It was very adorable though. It made the hug feel twice as amazing. 

It had been years since they had a moment just them together. Riley had been dreaming of a time like this ever since she broke up with Harper and never formally saw Sloane again. It was perfect. Sloane was perfect. Although maybe not the situation at hand. 

“I’m sorry she said that,” Riley whispered as she felt Sloane place her head on the crook of her shoulder. It was intoxicating. “It was so out of line. Fuck, Slo, she shouldn’t have -”

“Why do you care?” Normally, it would have come out as a snarl, but Sloane was completely defeated. She wasn’t strong enough mentally to be tough. Her vulnerability needed to be let out of its cage. “I haven’t heard from you in years and suddenly you start caring again?” 

It was well deserved, to a certain extent. Just because Riley wasn’t friends with Harper anymore didn’t mean that her relationship with Sloane was affected. Riley just assumed it would’ve been better to keep some space between them. After all, everyone in town was notorious for their conservative views. Sloane would’ve probably spit on her face if she dared to go back. 

“I’m sorry,” She genuinely was apologetic. Sloane wasn’t notorious for having friends and maybe she was the only one there for her, even if she was just a teenager. “I’m here now. Even if I’m not in the best terms with your sister, I promise I’ll be here as your fri-”

Riley expected the conversation to go in a variety of ways, but not this one. She expected Sloane to walk away, with her coat, and angrily go back to the house. It was the most Sloane thing she could do. What Riley could have never expected in a million years was to be interrupted by the older woman’s mouth upon hers. She wasn’t complaining though. 

Kissing Sloane was better than she could have ever imagined. It was soft yet strong. It was cold and hot. It was everything, but suddenly it was nothing. As quickly as their lips had interlocked, they parted ways. Riley was already missing that wonderful feeling. 

“Shit, oh my gosh,” Sloane went from having a breakdown to a freakout. While it was adorable to a certain extent, it was also worrisome. If Riley had done something wrong she would personally see to it that her funeral date be brought up to the following day. “Fuck, I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have done that. Shit, I’m so sorry Riley. I just got caught in the moment and I guess you’re pretty or whatever. I mean, not whatever cause you are definitely beautiful and I have been thinking about this for awhile, but that’s not the point. The point is that I fucked things up like I always do. Now you’re gonna be disappointed in me like my parents and, fuck, I don’t know why that hurts more cause we haven’t even seen each other in forev-”

“Oh shut up and kiss me,” Riley, with a new burst of confidence, commanded. She did not wait for a response and simply grabbed Sloane’s hips, pushing her towards her own body. She caught the woman’s lips once again, but this time for a more intense kiss. It was somehow better than the first.

Sloane’s lips felt softer than before, if that was possible. The hairs at the back of Riley’s neck rose as she felt the other woman’s hands against her flushed cheeks. The brunette hoped to drown for the rest of eternity in those tender puckered lips. They were magnets and she was drawn in with no fight whatsoever. In all truth, Riley was in heaven. 

As soon as their lips detached from one another’s, the young woman visibly groaned. It was settled: Riley hated not kissing Sloane. It was hell. Satan was definitely trying her. What a dickhead. 

“You’ve been very helpful,” The partially slurred tone in Sloane’s voice made Riley’s heart flutter. It was extremely adorable. God, this woman would be the death of her. 

“Well, I am a med student so it’s my job to be helpful,” Riley joked, successfully cracking a smile from Sloane’s beautiful face. Had she been told that she would get to watch her crush of over 10 years fight her sister, aka her ex, and then run after her only to kiss her in the dead of the night, Riley would’ve simply chuckled and left. “We should head back inside though. Wouldn’t want you to be my first patient.” 

Sloane laughed in retaliation and Riley swore she could listen to that forever. She hoped her dream was finally come true. Maybe it was a happy season after all. 

**Author's Note:**

> My tumblr is remy-roman so feel free to check me out ❤️


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